The new Star Wars games, from Electronic Arts and Lucasfilm Games, include a sequel to Jedi: Fallen Order, a new FPS IP and a Star Wars strategy game
May the Fourth be with you…
First up, the sequel to Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is again being developed by Respawn Entertainment. Respawn did a fantastic job on Fallen Order, so we’re very excited for the return of Cal Kestis and the continuation of his story. Given the success of the first game, it should be no surprise that development has been ongoing for some time. Numerous rumours from industry insiders point towards a Q4 2022 release date (my money’s on November), but we may get our first reveal far sooner. Put the 4th of May (Star Wars day) in your calendars, as that seems like a very likely date for the official release date announcement.
Pew-pew!
Development on the new Star Wars FPS is being headed by Peter Hirschmann, Game Director at Respawn. Hirschmann was the executive producer of the original Star Wars Battlefront games, which is enough to get most people’s attention. More excitingly, though, having Respawn in charge of the new Star Wars FPS is a big deal. For anyone who played the outstanding Titanfall 2, you’ll likely have fond memories of the excellent campaign; I enjoyed the Battlefront games, but the campaigns were forgettable at best. With Respawn’s proven talent at crafting playable and enjoyable single-player campaigns as well as innovative class-leading multiplayer experiences, this is a game I am awaiting with fervour.
[insert light saber noise here]
Finally, the new Star Wars strategy game is being developed by the newly formed studio, Bit Reactor. Studio head Greg Foertsch worked on XCOM and has grand designs for reimagining the strategy genre. Chief amongst his goals is to create a game that plays just as well on consoles as it does on PC. Expect the new Star Wars game to have exceptional production values, with a healthy mix of action and strategy. In an interview with GamesIndustry.biz, Foertsch stated he wants a greater focus on immersion and storytelling, without relying on walls of text, “That’s what we’re focused on – bringing that to the genre, and really blurring that line between what a strategy game is and what an action game is.”
So there we have it. Not one, not two, but three brand new Star Wars games spanning multiple genres, all in development right now. We may not have long to wait for Fallen Order 2, but in the meantime, if you fancy joining the teams working on the new games, Respawn is currently hiring, too.
